Will this work?

[WiseGuy10100]

Hi all, I was wondering if anyone could tell me if a Motorola XTS 3000 would work for my local P25 phase II Police frequency. The frequency is 460.350 (Towns West) Monroe County, NY. Also wanted to know if this would work for my ems agencies here in Rochester NY.

This is the radio I was thinking about getting:
https://m.ebay.com/itm/1-UHF-P25-Di...1:g:krcAAOSwHoFXqQ-8&_nkw=p25+radio+uhf&rt=nc

 

[jonwienke]

Unless you know how to program that radio to do non-affiliate scan, get a scanner instead. Otherwise you will likely get your radio bricked when it tries to affiliate with the system without authorization.

 

[lou9155]

you might have a problem if the authorities notice an unknown/unauthorized radio id popping up on their system and you dont want to accidentally transmit ..dude bad idea.....get a scanner

 

[mikewazowski]

It's a conventional channel.

 

[mule1075]

It's a conventional channel.

Then it is not Phase II as the OP suggested.

 

[ofd8001]

According to the database, the police side is conventional, so theoretically the radio could be programmed. It may not be the wisest thing to do, however.


The EMS system shows a P25 Phase II. So the radio shown in the link will not handle this.


The only benefit to using a "real" radio versus a scanner, is in monitoring simulcast systems. Now that the Uniden SDS100 is available, the simulcast problem has gone away. Scanners are much more flexible than radios, less hassle to have programmed and raise fewer eyebrows in many situations.

 

[WiseGuy10100]

you might have a problem if the authorities notice an unknown/unauthorized radio id popping up on their system and you dont want to accidentally transmit ..dude bad idea.....get a scanner

Would somthing like the Uniden BCD436HP be a better fit?

 

[jonwienke]

Absolutely, unless one or more of the systems you want to monitor are simulcast. If that is the case you'll want to go with the SDS100. But if nothing is simulcast, the 436 is an excellent choice.

 

[WiseGuy10100]

Absolutely, unless one or more of the systems you want to monitor are simulcast. If that is the case you'll want to go with the SDS100. But if nothing is simulcast, the 436 is an excellent choice.

How do I know if its simulcast?

 

[mule1075]

How do I know if its simulcast?

It is simulcast take a look at the link below.

https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=7308

 

[WiseGuy10100]

It is simulcast take a look at the link below.

Thank you!

 

[jonwienke]

Then I would definitely recommend the SDS100. Every other scanner has difficulty with simulcast, especially when mobile and using a directional antenna is not practical.

 

[WiseGuy10100]

Unless you know how to program that radio to do non-affiliate scan, get a scanner instead. Otherwise you will likely get your radio bricked when it tries to affiliate with the system without authorization.

One more question... I currently have an analog ham radio that's "unauthorized" for my fire and ems channel's. I've had it for about a year with no issues... would having the XTS3000 be much different besides on a different frequency...?

 

[jonwienke]

It would be totally different, at least for the P25 frequencies. Analog doesn't transmit unless you program the radio to transmit, AND you press the PTT button.

A P25 trunking radio is going to try to affiliate with the system by default, which in your case would be unauthorized access to the system, and you'd be running the risk of having your radio remotely bricked by the system admins and/or prosecution for unauthorized use of the system. And it will do so without you ever touching the PTT button, unless you know exactly how to force it not to.

If you don't have authorization to transmit, then you're far better off using a scanner. It will cover more frequency bands and digital modes, will scan multiple systems faster and more efficiently, and there is zero risk of the scanner transmitting anything and accessing the system without permission and getting you in trouble.

 

[WiseGuy10100]

It would be totally different, at least for the P25 frequencies. Analog doesn't transmit unless you program the radio to transmit, AND you press the PTT button.

A P25 trunking radio is going to try to affiliate with the system by default, which in your case would be unauthorized access to the system, and you'd be running the risk of having your radio remotely bricked by the system admins and/or prosecution for unauthorized use of the system. And it will do so without you ever touching the PTT button, unless you know exactly how to force it not to.

If you don't have authorization to transmit, then you're far better off using a scanner. It will cover more frequency bands and digital modes, will scan multiple systems faster and more efficiently, and there is zero risk of the scanner transmitting anything and accessing the system without permission and getting you in trouble.

Now what if I could program it for a non affiliate scan? Would that illuminate the risk of getting my radio "bricked"?

 

[jonwienke]

It's moot at this point, as it's already been determined that the radio you were looking at won't receive what you need it to anyway--it doesn't do P25 Phase 2. A scanner, even the SDS100, is going to end up being cheaper than a transceiver that will cover the modes you need, the required programming hardware and software, and the expertise required to make sure all of the numerous settings required for non-affiliate scan are set correctly.

 

[Nasby]

Now what if I could program it for a non affiliate scan? Would that illuminate the risk of getting my radio "bricked"?

Give it up brother. Just get yourself a scanner and enjoy the action.